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Assistant Managing Editor EAST LONGMEADOW For Tom Wolfenden and Steve Grande, the fight against cancer is personal. Wolfenden lost his father to cancer a few years ago, and Grande's son, Ben, just completed his treatment for leukemia, which he has been fighting for most of his teen years. He will enter his senior year at East Longmeadow High School in the fall. To honor their loved ones who have battled cancer, and to help support others struggling with the disease, Wolfenden and Grande will participate in the annual Pan Mass Challenge (PMC), a 192-mile bike ride from Sturbridge to Provincetown in two days. Wolfenden and his sister, Cindy Glickman of Framingham, will join their friend Pete DiStefano at the Massachusetts/New York border the day before the PMC and ride the entire state of Massachusetts. Wolfenden and Glickman have been participating in the PMC for the last five years, but this will be Grande's first try. He said he's been training, on and off, for about two months, averaging about 125 miles a week. And both men agree that the ride would be impossible for them to do without the support of their families. "That's why we do it for our families," Wolfenden said. Wolfenden's support team includes his wife, Cathy, and daughters Amanda and Devon. Grande's support team includes his wife Lisa and his children Ben, Jordan, Madison and Payton. "The ride coincides with the end of Ben's treatment," Grande explained. "He was diagnosed in Feb. of 2002 and this will be his first summer in four years without treatment ... I thought it would be a good time to start doing the race." Ben, who will meet his dad at the end of the race in Provincetown this weekend, said he's happy to have the support out there on the road. "I'm happy that they can help," he said. In an effort to raise as much money as possible for the Dana Farber Foundation, Wolfenden and Grande's friend, Paul Kennedy, has joined in helping them gain sponsors for their ride. Kennedy explained that he recently sent letters to friends and neighbors and hopes the response will be similar to what he's seen in East Longmeadow in the past. He also hopes Reminder readers will send a check or donate online to help the fight against cancer (see details below). "This community has been hit by cancer both adults and kids," Kennedy explained. "And the community has always rushed to support [worthy causes]." Grande explained that, when friends and neighbors first heard of Ben's diagnosis, they were all very responsive and generous, and he didn't want to ask those people for more than the great support they had already given. But after this newspaper ran his name in a release announcing local people participating in the PMC, he said he began hearing from people in the community seeking to support him in his ride. While the ride takes place this weekend, fund-raising continues through Aug. 30. Anyone interested in donating to Grande (ID#: SG0124) and Wolfenden's (ID#: TW0022) PMC ride may go online and enter their individual ID numbers there, or may send a check made out to the PMC, specifying which rider they would like to support, to Paul Kennedy, 60 Senecal Place, East Longmeadow, MA 01028. | ||||||
